Leonard Latkovski Jr.

After discovering the spelling of his first name as Leonhards ("Lion Hearted"), he began to adopt use of that name over "Leonard". He died on June 13, 2015, in Frederick, Maryland.

In October 2015, Hood College announced the Dr. Leonard Latkovski Memorial Prize in History, originally established in 2009 and renamed in 2015 for Latkovski's "outstanding achievement in history."

In 1969, Latkovski joined Hood College and taught History and Political Science there for more than 45 years–until his death in 2015. For some years, he was the Chair of the History and Political Science Department. He also coached the college's tennis team.

In 1967, Latkovski married Patricia Hannigan; they had four children.

Leonard Latkovski, Jr. (Latvian: Leonards Latkovskis jaunākais, 1943-2015) was a Latvian American professor of history and international studies at Hood College, who championed Eastern European studies, particularly those of his ethnic origin in Latgale, Latvia.

Leonard Latkovski Jr., was born on June 9, 1943, in Kārsava, Latgale, Latvia. His Catholic parents were Leonard Latkovski, Sr. (Latvian: Leonards Latkovskis seniors), and Albīna Putāns. (Latkovski Sr. was a professor of Classics at Bellarmine College.) He had eight siblings. In 1944, his family fled from the advancing Soviet army from Latvia to Germany, where they lived in refugee camps until they emigrated to the United States in 1950 and settled in Louisville, Kentucky. In 1961, Latkovski graduated from Louisville St. Xavier High School. In 1964, he received a BA in History from Bellarmine College (and served as president of its student body). At Georgetown University, he earned an MA in Russia and Eastern European history in 1967 and doctorate in Russian History in 1973.